The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend
by SugarsweetB
Summary: When James is attacked and put into a coma during a raid, Lily decides that two children are too much to handle alone and leaves one of them with her sister. Potters alive, Smart/Grey!Harry, Lily bashing, rating may change, poss. slash, better sum. inside
1. Dramatics and the Red Menaces

**Summary:** The Potters didn't have one child, but two. Twin brothers Anthony and Harry are left with Peter at their home in Godric's Hollow when Lily and James are called away. When Voldemort attacks, Dumbledore does not know which is the child of prophecy and so chooses to wait before declaring either one the savior. Lily favors the older twin, Anthony, so when James is attacked four years later, and placed under a coma, she immediately snatches up the chance to rid herself of Harry. But she isn't completely heartless; she takes him to her sister, Petunia, who she hasn't seen for several years. Too bad for her that she doesn't know what she has just started.

The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend

Chapter 1

Dramatics and the Red Menaces

Petunia had been busy preparing sandwiches when the doorbell rang. Glancing at Dudley sitting at the dining room table, she quickly wiped her hands on her apron before heading to answer it. What she saw there shocked her.

"Petunia!" was all the warning she had before she had a face full of long, red hair. Stepping back quickly, she saw who was perhaps the person that Petunia hated most in the world. Bright green eyes danced merrily, and long, auburn hair fell straight and smooth. Her skin was pale, almost pasty. Petunia thought that she must have used magic to enhance it, because Lily had always been tan and freckled. She was dressed well, in what Petunia was relieved to see were muggle wore a simple blue sundress and a pair of Grecian sandals. On her arm was a braided leather purse and a pair of dark sunglasses were perched atop her head; she looked too young to be a mother of twin five year-olds. And there they were, just behind her. _Fraternal_, Petunia noted absently. She had seen them before, of course on Christmas cards and pictures sent with letters to which she rarely responded.

Henry, the older twin, was round and plump, built a bit like Dudley. His hair was red, like his mother's, but messy and scattered about his head like a haystack. His eyes were a muddy brown and a smattering of freckles spread across his tan cheeks and small, pug nose. His eyelashes were short and his eyebrows were thick. He was a rather plain child, if not unattractive. The most notable thing about him was that he had rather large ears that stuck out from the side of his head. The second child, Harry, was much more handsome. He was slightly taller, and much more slender. He was willowy, unlike his mother, who was less graceful and more thin, clearly a form she acquired through careful dieting rather than genetics. She remembered that his father had a strong, solid build. His hair was an inky black like James, but was tame and slightly wavy, reflecting the light with flashes of violet and deep shades of red. His cheekbones were high, like his father's, but his nose was small, and turned up only slightly so that it appeared more endearing and less piggish unlike his brother's. He was pale, like milk, and his skin was smooth and clear, freckle-free. His eyes were almond shaped, slightly slanted, and even greener than his mother's. They were currently narrowed in what almost appeared to be dislike at his mother. But, no, that couldn't be possible, no one could hate 'Dear, precious, Little Lily', and most certainly not her own son. Her thoughts were interrupted by Lily's hand waving in her face.

"Tuney? Tuney darling, can we come in?" Petunia stared at her a moment, face blank, weighing her options. When she saw Mrs. Dalhart's curtains move across the street, she knew she had to let her sister in or be the focus of gossip for weeks to come. So, with a sigh, she opened her door fully to allow the three entrance. Lily breezed past, planting a kiss on Petunia's cheek as she went by, Anthony close behind her. Harry followed at a more sedate pace and paused on his way in to say, "Thank you for allowing us entrance into your home, Aunt Petunia, I apologize in advance for any way that my family may offend you," before proceeding into her house.

Petunia was surprised to say the least, and simply stared after him for a bit before she was startled by the sound of Lily calling her name. Closing the door with one last sigh, Petunia wandered into the kitchen where she found Lily and Anthony helping themselves to the sandwiches and crisps that she had laid out for her and Dudley's lunch.

Speaking of Dudley, where- there he was, sitting at the end of the table, staring at the strangers who had barged into his home and summarily begun eating _his_ food. He looked to his mother for help, but she was just as shocked as he was. At a movement to her right, she turned to see Harry staring at his family in disgust and with no small amount of shame. Seeing that his aunt had entered the kitchen, Harry cast an apologetic look her way before turning back to his mother to say, "Mum, I believe that you came here to _speak_ to Aunt Petunia, not to eat her food." He said this in such a dry, condescending tone that Petunia had to wonder if the child was truly five years old, and then, how used he must have been to see his mother behave so.

Lily looked up, startled, a sandwich halfway to her mouth. Clearing her throat, she placed the sandwich back on the platter. Dabbing at her mouth, she straightened up in her chair and attempted to look presentable.

"Now, Petunia," she began,"I'm sure you heard in my letters about what happened to James." No, she hadn't, but Petunia nodded nonetheless. Lily pulled out a handkerchief seemingly from midair and began to dab at her eyes. "Yes, it's tragic, so very tragic that I've been left alone, with two children...all alone."

Next to her, Harry scoffed, "It's not like he's dead," he muttered. Lily ignored him in favor of grabbing another sandwich and shoving it into her mouth. Looking at Anthony, Petunia saw that he had never stopped eating and now most of the sandwiches were gone. Petunia stared at Lily, waiting for her to continue, but when she saw her reach for another sandwich, she cleared her throat. Lily looked up at her, snatching her hand back and began dabbing at her eyes again.

"Ah, yes, all alone, with my dear children who I love so much, but...there are two of them and only one of me..." here, she gave a dramatic sigh and fanned herself with the hand not holding the handkerchief,"Life is difficult, so difficult." Judging by the heavy gold necklace around her neck and the diamond earrings in her ears, Petunia didn't think that life could be _that_ difficult. However, she kept that to herself though she noticed Harry roll his eyes. "So!" she said with sudden purpose, standing up. Anthony scrambled to follow suit and began to head to the door. "I was thinking, you only have the one child, and of course, you have Vincent to help you..."

"Vernon," Petunia automatically corrected.

"What? Oh, yes, Vernon, of course. And since you have Vernon to help you and all, I was thinking that you could take Harry off my hands for a while," Lily finished with a flourish.

"What?" Petunia looked for the person who had yelled so that she could tell them that she agreed with their sentiments exactly. Turning, she saw Harry staring at his mother in shock. Clearly, he hadn't been informed of these plans. "What do you mean? When was this decided? I don't even have my clothes, or my books, or-or-or...anything!" he finally forced out. Petunia turned to Lily, still dazed, waiting to hear what she would say.

"Yes, well, I'll send a house elf with your things, I'm sure you'll make do. Oh, and Petunia, you won't be able to send mail to the house anymore as Anthony and I are going on a trip; we'll be gone a few months at the least. And Harry dear, remember to be respectful, pick up after yourself, brush your teeth, all that, ta ta," she said, swinging out the door while sliding her sunglasses over her face. Anthony waved goodbye just as the door slammed shut. And with that, the Red Menaces were gone, leaving a shocked Harry and Petunia, and a still confused and hungry Dudley in their wake.

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><p>AN: I want to thank Elfwyn for catching my mistake. I totally wouldn't have gotten that. Or, if I had, it probably would have been really far down the road.<p> 


	2. Never Without Reason and Alliances

The Enemy of My Enemy is My Friend

Chapter 2

Never Without Reason and Alliances

"She's always been good at that," Harry heard his aunt say from behind him. He turned to look at her and found her staring at the door. Slowly, her attention turned to him and she studied him. "Leaving people behind, I mean."

Harry looked away. "I know," he said, "I just wasn't expecting…" he trailed off.

"That she would go so far as to leave her own child with people that he had never met?" his aunt finished for him. Suddenly, Harry found his hands to be the most fascinating things in the world. He jumped when a hand was thrust into his face. "Come," his aunt said, "You look like you could use a cup of tea." Harry stood up, and accepted her hand, allowing Petunia to lead him back to the kitchen.

Fifteen minutes later found Harry sitting at the kitchen table, eating his fifth chocolate chip cookie. His aunt sat across from him, sipping demurely at a cup of tea as she watched Dudley finish his the last few bites of his lunch. Once he had, she shooed him to his room, telling him to 'go play'. Harry watched Dudley leave before turning back to his aunt. She was staring deeply into her teacup, and for a moment, Harry almost thought that she was reading her fortune in her tea dregs before he remembered-she wasn't a witch.

"I was happy for her, you know," Petunia said, and Harry leaned forward in interest. "We all were, mum, dad, me…I think I was the happiest. I knew that I would miss her terribly. Lily was my whole life, almost. I didn't have many friends. Everyone always liked Lily, she was the pretty one; she was always smiling, laughing. People tend to appreciate a child more if they smile." She took another sip of tea. "It was like we were all riding a wave that just kept growing higher and higher the closer we came to the day that she would leave for Hogwarts. The day that she would leave us behind, but we were still so happy. I don't think that I really noticed at the time, though, the growing apart. Then, when the day finally came, we all went down to Kings Cross to see her off. We couldn't go through the barrier, of course, which upset mother terribly. 'I want to take pictures,' she said." Aunt Petunia sighed. "She promised to write. She said that she would write two letters a week. I waited for those letters. They never came." She looked at him shrewdly. " She didn't write ever, and then, when she came home from that school, she went on and on about how amazing it was, how wonderful. How much more special it was then our boring, mundane world. When she was finally gone from my life, once she'd married and moved out, I was shocked at the number of letters I received. All about how wonderful her life was, the money, the homes, the private island… There was no 'how have you been', 'or, I love you.' It was all about her, as always. Always about Lily. I see that that hasn't changed." Carefully setting her cup down on the table, she clasped her hands together before moving them to her lap and straightening out the skirt of her dress.

Harry didn't know what to say in the silence that followed. So, he said the only thing he could think of: "I'm sorry."

His aunt looked up, startled. "What? Why would you be- she was just a stupid-" she began with a derisive sniff before ending in a huff.

"One of the first things that I ever learned about my mother was that she only has room in her life for one person." Harry interrupted, ignoring her obvious surprise at his words. "My grandmother told me that. Or her portrait at least. I believe her. She was a Black. Father said that Blacks may be dark and mostly insane, but that they could give some good advice and that their more sharp than a goblin made sword."

Petunia nodded in agreement, "Yes, she's right." There was silence for a moment, then, "There was a boy, Severus, she met him one day, at the park. He told her that she was special, that she was a witch. That she had magic. You can imagine how pleased Lily must have been. For long, long while- years, even, he was all he talked about. But then, when she was fifteen, I think, it was the Potter boy. I never did know what happened. In all previous letters, all mentions of him had been of how horrid and immature he was, how he was always terrorizing Severus and herself. Then, snap, just like that, he's the love of her life and 'Sev' was suddenly synonymous with scum." She stopped to study him. "I'm supposed to hate your kind, you know," She continued almost conversationally, "I convinced myself that I did. But really, I hated the thing that took my sister from me…"

Harry looked at her with eyes that fairly gleamed with intelligence. "But it wasn't the magic that took her, was it? She left. Like you said, she became enchanted."

"Children shouldn't speak that way," Petunia said with a bit of her usual rancor.

Harry just gave her an incredulous look. "Why not?" he asked, leaning forward a bit in anticipation of her answer.

Petunia's eyes narrowed a bit, wondering if Harry was mocking her. She turned away from burning green eyes with a huff. "It's just- it's just not right. Children aren't supposed to talk that way."

Harry hummed under his breath and nodded in agreement. "I suppose a muggle would think that, but magical children mature faster."

"Mature faster? Why?" Petunia asked, looking at him out of her eye while trying to disguise her obvious interest.

Harry nodded again. "Magic," he stated with a mocking wiggle of his fingers.

"What would magic have to do with something like that?" Petunia asked, curious despite herself.

"Magic...affects wizard's greatly. It influences the way we grow, the way we think. Our emotions our thoughts, even our health. When we are at full capacity, when we have more magic, we tend to be more energetic, almost like when muggles have an adrenaline rush. When our reserved are depleted, were lethargic, and we have to rest until our magic is recovered. However, if too much magic is built up- if there's no release and it just keeps building- we can become severely ill. That's why, when we're young, or our emotions are high, we experience what's called 'Accidental Magic'. Muggleborns don't really suffer these affects as much- they normally don't have as much magic as purebloods, or even half-bloods. That isn't always a bad thing, though," he said with a wag of his finger. "Less magic is usually easier to control." He paused, thinking of what to say next, before looking up at his aunt. "Do you have any questions so far?" She nodded, and he gestured for her to speak.

"Who teaches you all of this. I mean, your kind doesn't start at that school 'til you're eleven, do they?" she asked. She was a bit suspicious about how much he knew at such a young age. Her mind was drawn to Lily's first summer back from Hogwart's. She'd gone on for hours about how she thought that there was some kind of conspiracy to keep children from non-Wizarding families behind by giving the others a head start. Listening to this little boy speak so certainly about something that seemed to be above his level, she wondered if there had been any merit in Lily's suspicions.

"Ah...mostly father and Dumbledore. Some stuff, though I learn through reading."

"Isn't Dumbledore...?"

"The headmaster of Hogwarts?" Petunia nodded. "Yes, he is. He's over at our house a lot, and we visit Hogwarts quite a bit. 'We' being my family, I mean."

"Do many children begin learning magic at such a young age?" Petunia questioned.

Harry nodded, "No, Father started learning when he was eight. And even then, it's just little things, like spells for cleaning and stuff like that- things that aren't really practical for someone with house elves to learn, but simple enough for children. Even then, though, we don't use real wands. Just generic practice wands so we can learn what it feels like." Suddenly, he grinned. "Before the accident, Father said that he may start me early. He told me that I'm more like a pureblood, that I've got more magic, and it's building up too fast." He seemed ridiculously pleased about this, though Petunia couldn't help but feel a faint sense of worry seize her. "Henry's almost a squib, but not me. I have almost the same amount of magic as a powerful adult wizard and it hasn't even settled yet."

"Settled?" Petunia questioned in confusion.

Harry nodded, "It means that it hasn't finished growing, it probably won't stop until I'm eighteen." Harry paused before continuing. "Like I said, magic changes the way people think…and the way that they grow as well. People with magic tend to be thin, because their magic is always eating as well. Children especially, as their magic needs more energy to grow. Apparently, at Hogwarts, every meal is a great feast because when we use magic, we need more to eat. So, when we're constantly doing magic in classes and stuff, we have to build up our reserves and eat a lot

Petunia just nodded. "So you need to eat more than a regular child?"

Harry seemed surprised by the question. "Well, kind of. Really, I usually just eat a series of small snacks in between meals, so that I'm not constantly stuffing myself."

"Yes, I suppose that makes sense." There was a lull in the conversation in which the two just sat in companionable silence. "Is there any way for you to get your things?" Petunia asked.

Again, Harry was surprised by his aunt's question. "Well, I think. I mean…maybe, I'm not really sure. I could try calling a house elf…"

Petunia eyed him seriously over the rim of her cup. "Well then, why don't you?"

"You wouldn't mind?" Harry seemed rather confused.

"Why would I? You're going to need clothes and things if you're going to stay here, and while I could go out and buy you clothes, I don't have the money for a whole new wardrobe."

"Well, yes, that's true, but-it's just…I thought you didn't like magic."

"I don't," his aunt responded curtly.

"Then why-?"

Placing her cup down, his aunt looked him in the eye. "Have you ever heard the expression 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend'?"

"Well, yes, of course, but what does that have to do-"

"It doesn't matter to Lily. Friends, family, her sister…her own son," she leveled a look at Harry, "It doesn't matter if they're not _the one_. And neither of us were or are."

"Yes, I suppose that that's one thing we have in common," Harry said with a wry grin.

Petunia smiled in return, "Yes, it is, isn't it… You're a bit like me, you know?"

"Oh? How?" Harry questioned, curious.

"You're a bit more on the practical side. You have your own reasons for doing things, your own plans and agenda. You don't waste time on things or people that won't aid you in some way. I get the feeling that you get what you want. Always." Harry just nodded, and the kitchen fell into silence once again. At last, his aunt broke it. "Well?" she asked. Harry gave her a puzzled look. "Are you going to call?"

Harry's eyes widened and he quickly stood up, "Oh." Snapping his fingers, he called out, "Bitsy," and with a crack of displaced air, a house elf appeared before him.

"Lord Potter sir calls, sir?" Bitsy squeaked out with an enthusiastic wiggle.

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><p>Wow, that feels like a weird place to stop, but oh well. I apologize for the delay, as I was on a camping drove all the way down to South Carolina from Ohio- that's about a fifteen hour trip one way. We roughed it (or our definition, as we had air conditioners for our tents and air mattresses) and I therefore had no wifi or even a computer. But, before I left, I was halfway through this chapter, so I just had to finish it, then edit, so here it is! I hope you enjoyed it.<p> 


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